Flaws found in plant’s first post-March 11 inspection

FUKUSHIMA – The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has found Tepco liable for 10 faults at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant following a 19-day inspection of the facility.

At a news conference held Friday in the city of Fukushima to announce the conclusion of the inspection — the first since the plant was crippled by meltdowns and explosions triggered by last March’s twin disasters — NISA officials said the faults involved safety preparedness and monitoring at the power station.

The inspection involved checking whether seven facilities, including the reactors’ cooling system, were being operated correctly.

After launching the inspection Feb. 6, a thermometer in the pressure vessel of the No. 2 reactor was found to be faulty and another showed a rise in temperature, but the officials found no faults in the way Tepco was monitoring the devices.